Page 40 of Her Devil

Nick is well and truly in the moment as he gasps, his hand covering his mouth in playful surprise. All too soon, the music cuts out, not nearly as many clothes on the floor as I was hoping for, but the happiness that courses through me feels good. A genuine and honest feeling of positivity that I have felt since… well, since I can remember.

Wyatt plucks a glass from a waiter, making his way to me and placing it in my hand, a kiss coming to my cheek despite the plastic mask between us. It’s a sweet gesture that I appreciate more than he realises as he disappears into the throng of people. All too soon, someone else is handing over a token, and the evening continues, but it seems I’ve set a theme.

Instead of show and tell and random song requests, we have ice bucket challenges and the sharing of guilty pleasures. Wyatt and Nick never bother to slide back on their clothes, and before too long there is a whole lot of abs, ink and skin on display.This is definitely not where I planned this going.

The tokens slow, that initial slew finally over as we settle in for the rest of the evening. More than one person ends up in the pool, but considering the gowns and masks, and the lengths that have been taken to assert our prominence, we don’t join in.

Two or more of the Devils are with us at all times, their attention confusing. Are they here to guard us? To ensure we stay where we’re supposed to be? Or are they here because they want to spend time with us? I’m not sure it matters, or why I even care as the champagne twirls its way through my system.

We make our way into the house at some point, the den becoming our space as everyone else filters out. The music is quieter in here, nothing more than background noise that manages to cover the sound of Taylor and Tamsin getting up close and personal, and they’re not the only ones.

Leo and Oliver, or Jacob, are whispering over the other side of the room, Charlotte continuing from the other night with George as she does a line off the back of his hand. I’m vaguely aware he probably shouldn’t be doing that with the drugs from a broken leg, but who I am to stand in the way of his fun?

Penelope and Aimee dance, and I find myself joining them, the freedom of our intimate group exhilarating. I’m aware of Leo’s attention, but he’s one of a few watching us, and it doesn’t have the same kind of sizzle as when Nick is in the vicinity.Sad but true.He joins us intermittently, dropping the keys discreetly in my hand and explaining where his and Wyatt’s room is.

He’s always there when I come out of the bathroom, but there are no more altercations between us, something I’m both grateful for and surprisingly disappointed by. I kind of enjoy getting a rise out of him.

The hours roll on, the guests leaving in dribs and drabs, their smiles placating, mildly amused by the seeming change in hierarchy, but no one comments. When I attempt to hand the keys back to Nick at some early hour of the morning, he wraps his hands around mine, telling me to keep hold of them, for now.

There’s a delicious promise in the words, his touch and proximity making me feel alive, my body ablaze with this secret between us. He steps back, giving me space as he disappears down the corridor to the rest of the house. Stephanie, Aimee and Charlotte are prepping to head back to what we now know as the pool house, our place, when I make it downstairs, some of the Devils in tow.

“Hold up and I’ll join you,” I comment, heading into the den to collect my clutch.

“Do you mind if I walk you back?” Wyatt asks, holding it out for me.

“Of course not.” I smile, secretly glad for the company. I’m openly grateful for the jacket he drapes over my shoulders as we get outside in the early morning air, his comforting warmth surprsing.

As a group, we meander down the driveway by the light from our phones. Charlotte stumbles on a stone and limps back with Oliver’s help, the two of them disappearing quickly in the house. Aimee and Stephanie say goodnight before going to check on Charlotte, but for some reason, I hover, not quite ready to let Wyatt go.

“So, it’s been an interesting evening.”

“Yeah,” he agrees. “That’s definitely one word for it. Have you had a good time though?”

“I have,” I agree. It’s not been sunshine and roses all the way through, but overall it’s been fun, and even Nick managed to make it good in the end.

The light above us goes out, the motion sensor flicking itself off as we’ve been standing here. He moves in closer, and the heat from his body brushes against mine, awareness zapping over me as the light flicks back on. It’s hard to read him with the mask covering his face, but as one hand slides to the back of my neck, his gaze goes to my lips and back, and I know what’s coming.

Nick might be interested in locking up my pussy, but he’s made no further suggestion of kissing me. My hand brushes against the cool plane of Wyatt’s chest, his shirt still nowhere to be found. When he lifts the edge of the mask, sliding it up his face and drawing my lips to his, I go willingly, excitedly.

His tongue caresses mine, gently, teasingly, pressing against me before pulling back. There’s barely a taste of him on my tongue before he’s gone, a longing tangling around my limbs. Wyatt has none of the jealous control that comes with Nick, or the tempting darkness of Leo. He’s light, bright, and comfortable. It would be so easy to fall into his soft words and gentle arms.So easy.

“Good night, Ivy,” he promises, the words spoken against my lips before he draws back, sliding the mask back into place. “Keep hold of the jacket, I’ll get it from you soon.”

With nothing more than a wink, he turns and heads back down the driveway, the light flicking back off again and plunging me back into darkness. I quickly let myself in the house, locking it behind me before grabbing a couple of bottles of water from the fridge and a pack of painkillers from the cupboard. If I don’t need them, Tamsin will.

Taking the belt off is both a joy and a disappointment, the freedom surprisingly confusing. It’s only been one night, but it felt good. The control I held, and that I gave away.

I’m changed and in my pyjamas, the belt and keys locked safely away when Tamsin finally arrives back, rolling on a post-sex high I can only imagine, but not too closely. Because the more I imagine how amazing she feels right now, the more I want it too. The problem is, three men are working their way under my skin.

THIRTEEN

JACOB

“That’s the last of the rubbish from outside,” Leo says, dropping the bag inside the glass doors and closing them behind him. “The speaker system needs removing but the DJ is coming back to do that tomorrow. Well, today, actually, I guess.”

“I knew what you meant,” I reply with a weary smile, rinsing the champagne flute and placing it on the draining board.

It’s been one hell of a long day, night, whatever, and I’m more than ready to be done with this cleaning up shit and curled up in my bed. Doing that with someone would obviously be the preference, but the chances of that are looking exceedingly slim right now.

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